Year: 2017

How Season change can affect Health

Have you noticed that right before a change in season, you experience an energy drop? People start getting flus and colds? Everyone is running off for injections?

There is a simple explanation for this depletion of energy and it does not involve food. It involves the environment; specifically the air.

As you all know, everything is made of atoms. These atoms are found everywhere. These atoms are balanced when there is a positive and a negative side. This makes them neutral.

However, they can become unbalanced when an electron is knocked off. This can happen through the environment: water, wind, air, sun and other environmental factors.

This will then make it an ion. If a positive electron is knocked off, it will become a negative ion. If a negative electron is knocked off, it will make it a positive ion.

Each leads to different consequences. Each affect the environment in a different way. This has a huge impact on the animals and plants around us.

How ions affect health

It is not only plants and animals that are affecting, it is humans too.

Specifically ,and ironically, positive ions can cause ill health in humans. It can affect our health and our mood by causing tension, irritability, depression, lethargy, insomnia, colds and other respiratory conditions. There is also a delay in reacting to stimuli.

The opposite, negative ions, cause the opposite. They are known to purify the air and kill bacteria.

They can cause improved energy and vitality in both people and animals. They can help with lowering high blood pressure and reducing symptoms of asthma and hay fever. They promote well-being and lift depression. They make us more alert and focused. They can also balance hormones, make our body more alkaline and improve digestion.

This could be why staying indoors can cause depression, lethargy and generally ill health. It could be the accumulation of positive ions.

What causes positive ions?

So lets take a step back: what is causing such a rise in the positive ions, especially indoors. Well, firstly, technology. There is air conditioning, heaters, computers, telephones and electrical appliances. It is also through pollutants, high voltage lines and radioactivity.

How do these ions affect our body?

Its quite simple, the positive ions will cause an excessive and sudden release of serotonin which can cause hyperactivity. This affects the adrenals and can lead anxiety and stress.

Negative ions, however, have a calming effect on the body and reduce serotonin. This brings us back to balance.

So bringing this back to weather…

So you know the myth about how the full moon brings in a bit of a crazy energy… well, now we have the scientific evidence to explain it. There are more positive ions in the air during a full moon which can lead to aggressive and depressive behaviour.

There are also more positive ions in the air right before a storm.

So how to we increase the negative ions in our life…

Very simply, get outside and be in nature. Preferably right after a storm. The rain literally cleanses the air and makes everything feel refreshed and alive.

But anytime in nature will give you a negative ion boost.

The other option is if you are stuck indoors is to get a Himalayan lamp, commercialized ionizers or indoor plants. They help to balance the ion levels.

The soy controversy

There is quite the debate about soy whether you vegan, vegetarian or not plant based at all.

Let us explore it some more.

What is soy?

Soy can be classified as a legume and vegetable.

Soy comes in a variety of forms. This includes tempeh, tofu, mock meats and much more. It is also often added to our food as hidden ingredients.

It can be also made into dairy form such as soy milk.

What is this controversy really about?

Soy contains a compound called isoflavones which falls under a class of phyto estrogens.

These phytoestrogens mimic hormones in our body that affects estrogen which is vital for functioning, especially for women.

However, phytoestrogens are not only found in soy. They are found in many other plant based foods such as flaxxseed, lentils, yams, sesame seeds, apple, carrots, beer and more.

Benefits of soy?

According to Dr Michael Gregor, soy is a wonderful food for women. It contains isoflovones and so may offer protection against breast cancer, endometrial cancer, ovarian cancer and multiple myeloma.

It is shown to decrease the effects of menopause and delay premature puberty in female adolescents.

It does not affect male fertility.

Soy has been shown to also help in arthritis, bone health, wrinkles, depression, allergies, asthma and reduce abdominal fat.

Concerns?

Over consumption of soy can lead has negative effects on our health. Soy contains a substance called genistein which is a isoflavone.

Genistein mimics soy’s estrogen compounds in the body and some studies have shown that this reduce fertility in women, trigger early puberty and disrupt development in fetus and children. However, this may come about if you do eat too much. That would be more than 5 servings a day which for a balanced diet would be considered too much anyway even without taking the above into account. The key is moderation.

Soy can affect thyroid functioning especially if you not getting enough iodine in your diet.

Soy is an allergen and can cause an allergic reaction. This can sometimes be worked around in through a specialized diet and does not mean staying off soy long term.

Some of the concerns around soy is that it is processed. It it taken in natural form and changed to an extent that is is not as natural, and therefore as wholesome, as it could be. This is especially found in mock meats. In this form, soy can be high in sodium. It is also contains large portion of fat.

Some may contain GMO but not all.

How is soy milk compared to cows milk?

Soy milk is a wonderful alternative to cows milks and can provide all the nutrients you need and more.

Soy contains the same amount of calcium but also has double the amount of antioxidants. It is high in protein. It is fortified with vitamin B12 and vitamin D, two much needed nutrients in our vegan diet.

It is also low in cholesterol, saturated fat and calories which is an added bonus.

Conclusion?

Soy is a very healthy addition to a vegan diet. When compared to the risks of eating meat, even the risks of soy far out weight them (unless there is a food intolerance).

My approach to soy is the same as my approach to diet: Keep it in balance. Do not over consume but keep it in moderation. My doing so, you can have a well balanced and healthy diet.

Vegan Consciousness Shift

Many see veganism as a trend, a phase, a way to lose weight, a way to stay young or a way to gain health.

Some see it as a way to alleviate suffering or protect the earth.

There are 100s of reasons to go vegan and 1000s of benefits you will obtain by shifting to this lifestyle.

While all of the reasons, perspectives and benefits are beautiful, fulfilling and great motivators, its only the tip of the iceberg. Veganism is so much more, especially on a consciousness level, some of which we are still trying to understand.

The world is at a critical junction at the moment: we are destroying the planet, literally raping it dry. We are getting to the point where if we carry on doing as we are, there will be no return. The world as we know it will not exist anymore. It will shift tremendously, wiping out many sentient beings as it does so.

Carnism(the term for meat eaters) has a big impact on this shift. Yes, for the industries and the destruction they cause but also for the mentality it brings.

This mentality is looking at suffering without fully seeing it. The animal, dairy and egg industries revolve around suffering. We have seen the videos and have heard of vegans fighting for animals rights. We know something is not right. Yet we deny.

We deny the reality: the suffering of the animals and the planet around us. We deny this so we do not have to deal with the emotions that we would surely feel if we had to truly see the suffering for what it is. When we do see the suffering for what it is, we feel unsettled and we feel pain.

And so the coping mechanism of denial helps us distance ourselves from the pain. Surely if we need coping mechanism to help us deal with the reality, the reality is not right in the first place? Would it not a better solution to be change reality so we can live a more truthful life?

The next mentality is one about sitting back, seeing what is going on but avoiding responsibility and avoiding change. We watch and makes excuses by justifying and telling ourselves that someone else will sort the problems out while I just carry on with my life. All Ill contribute is complaining when the weather goes crazy, the ice caps melt and food prices rise. But it is not my fault right? How can I change the industries?

Its a mentality of selfishness. As long as I can live my life and have what I want and I can do what I want and I can eat what I want, everything is ok. That is until the outside world starts interfering and affecting my inner world.

It is about judgement and separating. Because someone is a different nationality/species/mammal/ they are different to me. So they must feel different too??? Therefore we can treat them differently?

I mean, it is really ok to keep and adore cats but it is also ok to cruelly torture pigs. Do pigs feel and bond less than a cat would? The latest research would give that an interesting answer but thats for another article.

So yes, we are moving away from the industries, the cruelty and the mentalities that come with it. And we can just go vegan. Or we can shift ours and the earths’ mentality while transitioning too.

By shifting this consciousness, we do not transfer victimhood to a different species. We can start alleviating suffering in the world, starting removing what we do not want: selfishness, greed and fear.

We start seeing all beings (humans, animals, pets, our planet) as conscious and sentient beings. We see them from a space of love.

We take on the responsibility to shift the planet to a different and better frequency and we start enjoying this new reality we have created and the world we live in.

As Ghandi says: be the change you want to see in the world.

It starts with you.

So for those who are looking into veganism, this is what you can expect. For those that are already there, I would like to know what you think?